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An awesome and ridiculous film that leaves you thrilled beyond the point of your natural endurance
2012
Theatre
The show has suddenly become quite wonderful, and the galvanising factor is the terrific stage debut of Melanie C
Blood Brothers
Music
The British pop music industry may be eating itself but if Muse are the pick of what it can offer the world in 2010 then British music is in rude health indeed
Muse
I was smitten by both Gilberts enormous luxuriant moustache and the intelligence and nuance of this highly entertaining play
I totally recommend Babbo to anyone who is looking for really good and traditional Italian food
Always been a fan but never seen them live. I was ecstatic to be part of this epic event. WOW!
London,
André Paine's rating
Reader rating
Description: Veteran American folk singer-songwriter.
Phone: 0844482 8008
Website: www.roundhouse.org.uk
Email: info@roundhouse.org.uk
Trains: Tube: Chalk Farm 
, Tube / Bus: 24, 27, 29, 31, 134, 135, 168, 214, 253, 274, C2 
Extra info: Food, Pub
Freewheelin’: Bob Dylan didn’t play a single note from his latest album at his Roundhouse show, and even his classic songs were hard to recognise as he changed their tempo
Sixty-eight years and 33 albums in and Bob Dylan seems bigger than ever. When this 3,000-capacity show went on sale, there were more than 100,000 attempts to buy tickets in an hour, crashing the Roundhouse website.
Those who succeeded were happy to queue around the block waiting for the doors to open, although celebrity fans Jude Law, Clive Owen and Bill Nighy presumably didn’t join us in line.
This was a special, relatively intimate event ahead of today’s release of Dylan’s decent new album Together Through Life. But the impressive demand — he also played the O2 Arena on Saturday — really has little to do with his 33rd record, and he didn’t bother to play a single note from it.
However, if the audience were expecting this dapper gentleman in a dark jacket and wide-brimmed white hat to recreate his Sixties legacy in exchange for £75, they should have known better. Dylan’s reputation for frustrating live experiences precedes him, and this was no exception: he stood behind a keyboard for two hours, his voice rattling and rasping through recent songs as well as several classics, which were often rendered unrecognisable by their altered tempos.
His blues-rock band were undeniably brilliant. And, once the performance settled down during a pleasingly ragged Tangled Up In Blue, the wrecked vocal actually provided a welcome and surprisingly malleable counterpoint to the sharp guitar licks and expert rhythms.
Despite Dylan’s reluctance to faithfully reproduce his famous songs or actually communicate with the audience, the atmosphere was generally devotional. Even the man who shouted “cantankerous old bastard” expressed it with a certain amount of respect.
On a stark stage, Dylan and his musicians blasted through 2001’s Tweedle Dee & Tweedle Dum, but few of his other 21st century compositions could compete with its killer riff.
Dylan offered the occasional keyboard and harmonica solo, but ultimately it was his imperfect yet distinctive vocal that kept you enthralled, especially on a mumbling finale of Like A Rolling Stone. He briefly turned to the crowd to accept their applause, then returned for an encore that included All Along The Watchtower, the lovely, lilting Spirit On The Water from 2006 and a resolute Blowin’ In The Wind. There was only a glimpse of the original Sixties protest singer, but it was enough. He may be difficult and frustrating, but Bob Dylan remains a uniquely compelling artist.
Details are correct at the time of publication - please check with venue before booking.
Ha ha, thanks Rory. You've reminded me of why I left my wife. She was on another planet as well..
- Rob, Oxford
Sugar Babe was acceptably pleasant, although most of the concert seemed like Dylan was going into an alzheimers-esque dream, he just does not seem to have his heart in it any more. Maybe he should retire. His band looked bored with the whole thing as well. Stu Kimball who even last year, pulling hilarious grimaces looked glum.
- Jamesie, London UK
As the aforementioned heckler I'd just like to apologise for my disgraceful behaviour coming as it did less than 48hrs after chucking a beer over someone on the Camden Crawl for claiming Dylan was the most overrated artist ever. I should explain. I'm not a Dylan fanatic, this was my first Dylan concert and I enjoyed it, I really did (I'm glad your reviewer picked up on the fact that it was meant respectfully, 'cos it truly was). The thing is I felt sorry for the guy. There was too much adoration in the air and I wanted to put a smile on his face. I hope I did, if not I apologise.
- Alec Turner, London, UK
I hated every minute of the concert. It was like watching a very mediocre blues band playing long uninspiring 12 bar blues. His organ solos were tedious and the verisions of 'all along the watch tower' and 'like a rolling stone' were disastrous. I cannot understand how anyone would have enjoyed listening to that, it's simply bad music.
- Rory, London
dylan has always treated his audience and fans with contempt. It is understandable that a musician needs to mover on and not keep rolling out the old numbers decade after decade.
but its the fans that pay his bills, and it would have been good if dylan had stooped just a couple of times to pllay a few numbers that we could just about recognize.
- Mark Armstrong, london. uk
